Contractor pleads guilty in asphalt-buying scheme

July 01, 2005

CHICAGO — A Chicago paving contractor pleaded guilty Thursday to buying asphalt he knew was stolen from the city.

Willie Brown, 74, bought the deeply discounted material from drivers in the city's scandal-plagued Hired Truck Program and used it to pave two church parking lots. His scheme cost the city several loads of asphalt worth about $6,600.

The drivers would take asphalt intended for city work and sell it to Brown for $350 per truckload. The value of the asphalt is closer to $600 per load, authorities said.

The churches were unaware that they were receiving stolen asphalt.

Brown is the 18th person convicted of charges stemming from the federal investigation into corruption in the Hired Truck Program. Brown could face 20 years in a federal penitentiary for his crime. He is free on bond pending his sentencing Sept. 27.